


Cheat death, steal gold, then we'll go far

by sircantus



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Again, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Families of Choice, Family Dynamics, Found Family, Gen, I deleted the last one but WE'RE BACK, It's pirate time, Lighthearted Fic, Phil and Technoblade are ocean gods, Pirates, There's not going to be a lot of angst tbh, We're here for the ADVENTURE and the PIRATES thats IT, Wilbur and Tommy are pirates with the self preservation of a toothpick, Wilbur and Tommy just wanna find treasure and cheat death, You can guess how that would go, and you know what good for them
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-03-16
Packaged: 2021-03-18 04:01:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,167
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29603544
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sircantus/pseuds/sircantus
Summary: “I’ll go to you, just-” There’s the loud sound of gunfire, and Wilbur cries out, dropping to the floor, the sword falling out of his hand as he curls up on his side.“WILBUR!” Tommy screams, seeing him drop to the ground. He would go to run after, if it weren’t for the fact that he’s taking cover from the gunshots, and the fact that the thing in his hand is now glowing impossibly bright.Tommy’s about to say fuck it all, and run across deck even with the possibility of getting shot, when the ship suddenly lurches to the left, and Tommy screams again, a high pitched humming seeming to be floating in the air.ORWilbur’s a pirate/sailor, who’s picked up Tommy on his adventures. He’s also good friends with two powerful gods of the seas, who now after a whole two years without getting called, are more than a little concerned and confused at finding Wilbur again, bleeding out on a ship with a kid that's trying to stab them.
Relationships: Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit
Comments: 87
Kudos: 645





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> HELLO I had deleted this because my Sad brain convinced me it was stupid and that no one liked it
> 
> Obviously that's wrong, I am Not going to make any impulse decisions while being sad anymore, that's for sure
> 
> Now pirate is back!! I am excited!! Lets go!!
> 
> Also Zanna if you are reading this (hope you are) hello. Hope you and ur friends are yelling.(you guys yelling over it helped me put this back up lmao)
> 
> Enjoy!!

It was supposed to be an easy trip. 

There was a certain place they needed to get to for trade, a small town where Wilbur had a few friends that could help with their goal in searching for treasure (or trouble, really depends on how you look at it). They had a map and a rumor of something powerful, along with countless upon countless warnings of how people never came back, they always died, blah, blah.

Wilbur seemed to consider warnings with a grain of salt, and Tommy even more so, because sure they could be careful, they could turn back, make another route, but no one ever got anywhere like that. No one ever found glory and riches like that. 

Not that they were after riches. Glory, maybe, the perk of respect would be nice, but what they were really after was adventure. Pure adrenaline and danger, something that would make you fight for your life. Something that would be entirely worth it.

If you asked Tommy, he would say it’s for the fame, for the money. If you asked Wilbur, he would say curiosity, the need to know. For both of them, it’s the need for a good partner, and one hell of a story to tell. 

Tommy’s been with Wilbur long enough to know that he prefers to stay on land, for some weird reason. He works a boat just fine, and can lead people even better. Tommy’s watched in something like admiration in the way Wilbur can adapt to the harsh seas, and can direct whatever crew they’ve convinced to come along with them. He’s a natural at it, like he’s done it all his life, but he prefers to stay on land, to travel on foot. 

He supposes it makes sense, with the way that everytime they do go on water, Wilbur glances towards the ocean with a hesitant look, eyes the wind above with a pause whenever it gets too loud. 

Wilbur must’ve lost a whole crew once, to a storm, is what Tommy assumes. It would make sense as to why he gets jumpy when they’re out in the ocean, and the clouds grow too dim. Tommy’s only asked about it once, and Wilbur had given a vague answer, before moving on to checking with the crew. 

“The ocean holds a lot more than you know, Tommy.” He had said, and Tommy didn’t get to know what the fuck that meant, because Wilbur never went on to elaborate. He never elaborated, after that. He can answer all of Tommy’s questions to the best of his ability, but whenever Tommy starts to question the way he acts around the sea, he deflects it and somehow ends up getting Tommy to do chores. 

It’s annoying as hell, but Tommy has bigger things on his mind, like their destination now. 

A week trip on the ocean, if the conditions are favorable. A journey to meet up with some friends on Wilbur’s side, who might know a thing or two about the legend him and Tommy are poking at. 

Him and Wilbur aren’t even entirely sure as to what they’re trying to look for, only that it’s ‘powerful’ and ‘dangerous’ and a bunch of words that they’ve heard over and over, and it’s really just annoying at this point. 

Wilbur holds the map to where the apparent treasure is supposed to be, and it’s held tightly in his hand when they board the ship, a sturdy thing that Wilbur got from someone owing him a favor. Their crew is a bunch of people who needed to get to where they’re going anyway, and people who would just like to get back out onto sea. Wilbur offers nothing in cash, but he’s convincing enough that people will be fine with nothing. 

Tommy tugs at the jacket over his shoulders as the wind blows harsh, colder than usual, chilling through his bones. The jacket is a bit too big for him, hangs loose on his frame, but Wilbur had stolen it right off a jerk who insulted them to his face, so Tommy thinks it’s absolutely perfect. 

He looks off the edge of the railing, watching the docks get farther and farther away as people run around the ship to keep it sailing along. Glancing over to Wilbur, he finds him standing still by the railings as well, dead-still and staring at the water with a conflicted expression. He looks almost sad, like he’s missing something, but there’s also a hint of hesitation mixed into his eyes. 

His hand is holding at the chain around his neck, a small marble or something that’s always been with Wilbur, even since Tommy’s met him. Tommy’s asked about it before. He never gets an answer. 

The wind blows again, cold once more, and Wilbur looks up from the water, turning his head to Tommy, who stares back, unflinching, eyes raised in silent question. 

Wilbur just grins, then goes off to yell to the crew to keep an eye out for storms. 

Tommy huffs, then goes to follow Wilbur at his heels. 

\---

Phil blinks his eyes open to the water turning boiling hot around him, and to Technoblade pacing around, staring off into the distance, seeming too worked up for such a calm evening. 

“Techno.” Phil says quietly, yawning in the water, feeling the sea only grow even hotter around him, to the point that Phil wonders if something will melt. “What’s wrong?”

He wants to sleep again, even if he doesn’t really need it. He can go decades without sleep, but the feeling of drifting off into dreams is something he’s fond of. Especially these days, with the slight ache in his heart.

Techno pauses in his pacing, going still, then he looks up and to the side, past the darkness of the sea to where the surface lays high above. 

“Don’t  _ you _ hear it?” He asks, narrowing his eyes into the distance. His expression spells determination and hope.

Phil just pokes at the glowing plants around him, their only source of light so far down, humming in the dim water. They’re almost wilting, with the way the water boils around them.

“Hear  _ what _ ? The only thing I’m waking up to is you pacing around like a madman.” He sits up, sighing, because he knows that rest isn’t going to be coming back anytime soon, with that look in Techno’s eyes. 

“Listen.” Techno holds up a finger, and Phil raises his head up, mildly curious, slightly concerned for anything living around them. “I think…”

A minute passes, Phil waiting, eyes flicking around, and nothing. Technoblade almost seems frustrated, dropping his head down with a small huff. 

“I don’t hear anything.” Phil says softly, almost feeling the disappointment rolling off from his friend. “What was it?”

“I thought…” Techno trails off, eyes searching again, but they find nothing. He looks down again, emotions simmering down, the water losing its heat. “I thought I heard Wilbur.”

Phil frowns, tilting his head to the side. The name gives a pang of something like grief in his chest, and he wishes to lay back down and sleep again.

It’s been too long since they’ve heard of Will, since he disappeared off the shores and never came back. 

It’s been two years now, three months, seven days. Not that Phil is counting. 

It had been normal for Wilbur to be busy for a few weeks at a time, maybe a month, pushing it. But not this  _ long _ . Phil worries that he might’ve gotten into trouble, might’ve even died, without them knowing it. The thought terrifies him, and Phil knows he should’ve expected it, with Wilbur being mortal. It was to be expected, Wilbur can’t stick around, he’s not as strong as they are. 

Which is why him and Techno had been trying to put together  _ something _ , polishing out a plan where Wilbur’s mortality would stop being such a worry. Where finally, the three of them would be fine and Wilbur might even join them under the sea. 

But then he left, before they could bring it up. He left, and he never called them again, never showed up on their usual shores that they visited. 

Who knows where he is now, and if he’s alive. 

Sometimes, Phil travels across the oceans, hoping to find a ship that has Wilbur on it. He goes from island to island, checking on familiar shores, spotting certain ships. But each time, there’s nothing. 

He hopes it’s just his bad luck, the size of the sea working against him. He hopes that maybe, even as terrible as it sounds, Wilbur is just avoiding them. It would be better than Wilbur being gone. 

Phil tries listening again, a small twinge of hope in his chest as Techno sighs, long and tired, walking over and sitting down beside Phil. 

“I think I’m hearing things.” Technoblade mumbles, rubbing his hands against his face. “I just thought-” He cuts himself off. 

Phil ignores him, getting to his feet, and he pushes the light around them outwards, trying to see more, even if it won’t help. 

“Phil.” Technoblade says, raising his head to see Phil chasing after hope, after any sliver of chance that finally,  _ finally _ they can hear Wilbur on nearby waters. 

“Sh.” Phil shushes him, and Techno just grimaces and leans back, kicking his legs up. He’s already brushed it off as false hope, he’s had too many false chances at this point to take them so seriously. Phil always thinks the next chance could be the one, though. 

The water is quiet around them, and Phil tries to  _ see _ , tries to search along the waves high above, ignoring the way Techno’s mood has soured, no doubt affecting the weather above the surface. 

He reaches out, looks through the water of the waves far, far above his head, and he sees ships scattered around on their ocean, mortals traveling along, a few fighting in their petty arguments. The usual. 

He focuses on two certain ships, focusing on the one that’s under attack, where the people on it are panicking and dying, are yelling, and he hears-

“ _ Tommy, use it-! _ ” 

“Technoblade.” Phil gasps out, opening his eyes, feeling the currents run around him too quickly, and he turns to tell that they need to go, because Wilbur’s here, he’s  _ alive _ , and he’s close, when something high pitched and familiar rings out, washing out the relief in his heart, replacing it with a sharp panic. Because Wilbur is alive, but he’s not safe, no, he’s on a ship that’s under attack, and-

And he’s calling for help. 

\---

Their ship gets attacked. 

Tommy’s never really dealt with an attack before, has never seen pirates swing onboard, shooting and swinging, trying to kill and steal. Maybe once or twice, they’ve had the threat of it, but Wilbur’s always swayed them, always gotten away. He’s good at his words, and they’ve lost a fuckton of gold and valuables before, but it was better than this. 

This time, he didn’t even get a chance to talk it out. They just straight up shot a cannonball into their crew, like the rude motherfuckers they are. 

It’s terrifying as hell, but if there’s one thing that’s reassuring, it’s that Tommy is hard as hell to kill, and that he can and will make everyone’s life harder. 

He does just that, running down the stairs with a racing heart, a rock held tightly in his hand. He chucks it with as much strength as possible, watching it hit someone in the side of the head, stopping them from trying to climb onto their ship, and instead sending them to the waters below. He does not check to see if they know how to swim.

The wind has picked up even more, and there’s a light sprinkling rain that seems to get more and more worse by the minute, hitting the wood of the ship, covering everything in a light layer of rain. Tommy ignores the sound of startling thunder of his head, mixed with the sound of fighting and yelling around him. 

“Wilbur!” Tommy yells out, ducking as something gets fired at him, and he falls to the floor, watching the wood just in front of him turn into a crater, cracking and snapping into the lower part of the ship. There’s a high scream of one of their crew somewhere to the side, something like a battle cry. Tommy respects them, even if they’re most likely outnumbered. 

“WILBUR!” He yells again, pushing himself to his feet, running around the crater and the broken wood. He wipes rain off his face, feeling the water come down harder. 

There’s unfamiliar faces climbing over the railings, holding swords and firing guns, and Tommy chokes down the way he wants to cry and instead yells, picking a sword up off the ground and defending himself as best he can when someone bigger tries to swipe at him. 

He knows that the crew doesn’t stand a chance, just simple people Wilbur’s snatched up from town, not warriors who know how to fight and defend their ship. They don’t stand a chance, but Tommy fights like they might, and he stabs someone in the leg, before rolling across the floor underneath them, and going into a run again. He’s not trying to win a fight, he’s trying to find  _ Wilbur _ . 

The forming puddles under his feet splash as he runs, and his hair sticks to his head from the rain, the wind being simply unforgiving now, biting at his skin, chilling him right through the jacket that hangs too loose on him. He hides behind a crate, breathing hard, looking around, and someone grabs him by the arm harshly. 

He screams, sending a punch out before thinking, and it lands solid, Wilbur falling back. Sitting back up, he quietly groans in pain before brushing it off, more preoccupied with seeing if Tommy’s alright. 

“Wilbur! Holy fuck, sorry, I thought-” Tommy stammers, relief flooding him, and his eyes stick to the way there’s a cut right across Wilbur’s cheek, bleeding red. He’s also half soaked from the rain falling from the sky, and his eyes are wide with adrenaline, fear, and also pure craziness, probably. He looks like he’s having fun, and Tommy would be slightly concerned, if it weren’t for the fact that he also thinks having pirates attack them is pretty cool too. 

“Nevermind that, good punch, are you okay?!” Wilbur says, raising his head and looking around, seeming more panicked than Tommy’s ever seen him. Which makes sense, they’re in the middle of a storm, while getting attacked, it’s not the best situation, but his eyes flick to the dim clouds over their heads, and he looks scared for a different reason. He turns back to Tommy. “Did anyone hurt you?!” He grabs onto Tommy by the shoulders. 

“I’m fine!” Tommy reassures, grabbing onto the front of Wilbur’s shirt, feeling the way the ship rocks precariously, the two of them keeping their balance just barely. “What the hell happened to you, where did you go?! I was looking around, but you went off and disappeared while we’re getting fucking attacked-”

“Tommy.” Wilbur looks up, looks to the left, off the side of the ship, where the waves crash. He holds onto Tommy’s shoulders tightly, eyes wide. “Look, there’s a lot I haven’t told you, I’ll be honest, but I need you to listen, even if it sounds crazy-” He pulls the necklace he owns over his head, making Tommy hold onto it, wrapping his hands over his, squeezing tightly enough that it translates that Tommy can’t lose this. 

He doesn’t get to go on as someone with a sword comes from around the crate, Wilbur getting to his feet and punching the absolute shit out of them before Tommy can even scream about someone attacking them. They fall backwards, and Wilbur yanks the sword out of their hands, going on to kick them in the side and let them roll away with how the ship tilts and how slippery the floors are from the rain.

Tommy leans against the crate, pushing his hair out of his face, holding on tightly to the necklace in his hand. It’s a small orb of some kind, bright blue, a gold line around the middle of it. Tommy can’t help but stare for a second, and he swears that it feels cold, in his palm. He closes his hand around it, seeing Wilbur turn to him again. 

“We’re going to use that, okay?” Wilbur says, pointing with the sword to what Tommy holds in his hand, and Tommy only makes a face at him like he’s crazy. 

“And what the fuck is this?” 

“It’s-” Wilbur stammers, waving his hands, taking a step towards Tommy. “I-I can’t really explain right now, you’ll think I’m crazy.” He grins, words mixed with a laugh. Tommy can’t tell if he’s chuckling out of panic or amusement. It’s probably both. 

“I already think you’re crazy.” Tommy deadpans, giving a matching grin.

Wilbur scoffs, waving him off, continuing. “It’ll call for help, just, just use it-”

“How am I supposed to-?” Tommy goes to ask what he means by  _ using _ it, because it’s just a pretty necklace thing. He holds his fist to his chest, and he doesn’t get a chance to ask properly, watching as Wilbur gets tackled from the side by someone new. “Wilbur!”

“Tommy, use it-!” Wilbur yells, slamming into the ground, barely keeping himself from getting decapitated as his back hits the floor, and he kicks his legs out, trying to get the other person to back off as Tommy can only watch, the rain pouring buckets now. Tommy could try helping, but he doesn’t have a sword, and the storm has turned unforgiving. 

“How do I-” Tommy looks down, holding the necklace tight, gasping in air as he watches Wilbur make his way farther and farther, trying to not get stabbed, trying to keep distance between him and his opponent. He has no idea what Wilbur is on about, has no clue on how they’re going to even live, but he makes a guess and holds onto the necklace tightly, internally calling for help, over and over. He feels crazy, but Wilbur did not specify on how to use it, so this is the next best thing, yelling for help in his head while holding a piece of jewelry. 

Wilbur yells in victory as he finally gets his sword through his opponent, finally winning, but it’s short-lived, because he’s not safe yet. 

Tommy watches with wide eyes at the thing in his hand glows, and he would be worried about it, but he’s more worried about Wilbur, who’s too far away for comfort. “Wilbur-”

“Stay there!” Wilbur yells, holding a hand out, the two of them trying to not fall over with how the waves push at them, how the rain and wind works against him. 

Tommy can barely hear him over all the commotion, and he realizes a second too late that the fighting has more or less stopped on this side of the ship, and that there are people leaning over the railings on the ship across. 

“I’ll go to you, just-” There’s the loud sound of gunfire, and Wilbur cries midway through his words, dropping to the floor, the sword clattering and falling out of his hand as he curls up on his side. 

“WILBUR!” Tommy screams, seeing him drop to the ground. He would go to run after, if it weren’t for the fact that he’s taking cover from the gunshots, and the fact that the thing in his hand is now glowing impossibly bright, almost humming. 

Tommy’s about to say fuck it all, and run across deck even with the possibility of getting shot, when the ship suddenly lurches to the left, and Tommy screams again, a high pitched humming seeming to be floating in the air.

The rain lessens, the sky going brighter, and the storm simmers down almost unnaturally. Tommy doesn’t even notice, instead going to run to Wilbur, falling to the ground beside him, his knees aching as he drops to the floor. He doesn’t notice the way the gunshots have paused, the canons no longer trying to sink them. 

“Wilbur! Wilbur, are you okay?!” Tommy shakes him, turning Wilbur over with a grunt, feeling his heart drop when he sees a deep red coming from Wilbur’s side. Wilbur blinks his eyes open, face scrunched up in pain, and he closes them again, the back of his head hitting the floor. “Fuck, fuck, okay, hold on.” 

Tugging off his jacket that’s soaked, he holds it to Wilbur’s wound, trying to think of how the hell you treat a gun wound. He’s never been taught that properly, he’s never dealt with it. He’s been shot before, in the arm, but that was a long, long time ago, and that wasn’t with Wilbur. 

Wilbur’s head turns to the side, eyes barely open as Tommy tries to lessen the bleeding, and Tommy doesn’t stop mumbling under his breath, ignoring the way blood is soaking through onto his hands. 

“You’re gonna be fine, we’re going to be fine, I swear to fucking god if you die, I’m going to kill you- Wilbur, just fucking-”

There’s footsteps coming up behind him, and Tommy abandons trying to press against Wilbur’s side, instead leaning forward and reaching out to the sword Wilbur’s dropped. Spinning around, he holds his arm over Wilbur and holds the sword out in front of him, teeth bared in a threat.

Phil stands in front of them, eyes wide, and for a second, Tommy’s thrown off by how perfectly clean and dry he looks, even though the rain had just been falling and there had been debris flying everywhere. He looks like he wasn’t even on the ship, rather plucked out of a calm town, some random fisherman, maybe.

“Wilbur?” He asks, quiet, and Tommy almost snarls, gritting his teeth, holding the sword out. 

“Stay away, get the fuck away!” He threatens, Phil turning his attention to Tommy, almost confused, but mostly concerned, narrowing his eyes like he’s trying to figure something out. “He’s already dying, you-”

“He’s hurt?” Phil asks, face unreadable, and there’s a loud thump with the wash of a wave behind Tommy. Footsteps sound out again, boots against wood, and he turns his head to see Techno walk over from the broken railing, eyes burning. 

That expression almost makes Tommy call for surrendering, but Wilbur’s bleeding out from under him, and he has no guarantee they’ll spare him, so he turns the sword onto Techno, getting to his feet. 

Techno doesn’t even falter in his steps, not even when Tommy points the sword at his face, and he just grabs the sword by the literal blade of it, and yanks it out of Tommy’s hands, throwing it to the side with a clatter. 

His hand stays uncut, and Tommy stares with wide eyes, Techno taking another step forward. 

Tommy falls to the floor before either of them can react, and he reaches into one of his pockets while leaning over Wilbur, draping himself over the other like a shield, sending the harshest glare he can at Technoblade. 

“Fuck off, get away.” He threatens, and keeps the small knife under him, hidden. He’ll shank them if they get too close, but right now he’s really just trying to make it obvious, don’t come near. 

“I know him.” Technoblade says, eyes looking at Phil for a second, and they’re probably sending messages through their expressions to each other, but Tommy barely sees it, more concerned with how the hell he’s going to pull Wilbur through this. 

“Know  _ who _ ?” Tommy asks, making a face. Techno narrows his eyes in slight irritation, before it simmers down into something that could be fond, as he looks at Wilbur’s bloodied face. 

“Will.” He answers, and Tommy blinks, trying to wrack his brain for any mentions of friends nearby, ones that match to their description, but he thinks too slow, and Phil tugs him backwards as Techno kneels down to Wilbur. 

“Here, mate, come on-” Phil tries suggesting, Tommy spinning around and trying to hit him. 

“Don’t fucking-!” Phil smacks his hand before it lands, and his eyes look down to the knife in Tommy’s hand. He raises his eyebrows. 

“Don’t use that.” He says, grinning, like getting stabbed from Tommy is a funny thought. 

Tommy holds it up anyway, the necklace held tightly in his other hand. “I’ll stab you.”

“It won’t do shit, but be my guest.” 

Tommy tilts his head with the strange reply, confused, and his attention is caught from Technoblade speaking up again. 

“He’s alive.” Techno announces, Phil smiling, Tommy sighing quietly. He slips his arms under Wilbur’s legs and head and picks him up off the ground, leaving a bloodstain behind. “But he won’t be for long, we should go.”

“Oy, don’t fucking touch him, you bitch-!” Tommy swears, jumping off his feet to lunge at Techno, and Phil just barely grabs him in time, Tommy kicking his legs. “Hey! How do I know I can trust you with him!? I’ll fucking stab you if you do anything, I swear-”

“Okay, calm down-” Phil laughs lightly, Techno completely ignoring Tommy and walking over to the broken railing to the side. 

“Hey, give him the fuck back! Bitch-!” Tommy tries to turn the knife in his hand onto Phil, and Phil literally just spins him, taking a step back, towards where Techno’s walked off to, and as he holds Tommy by the wrist, his eyes finally fall onto the necklace he holds. 

His eyes widen the slightest bit, looking at Tommy again with a different light in his eyes. “How do you have this?”

Tommy yanks his hand back, Phil letting him, and Tommy brushes off the question, quickly going past Phil, to follow where Wilbur’s getting taken to, and he only gets so many steps before he’s standing behind Techno, his heart almost stopping. 

They’re both looking past the railing, Techno still holding Wilbur, looking out with a bored expression, something burning in his eyes that Tommy doesn’t see, and Tommy looks past Technoblade, eyes wide at the sight of the ship across from them in absolute chaos. 

The waves come up in a way Tommy has never seen before, pushing the ship higher and higher, making it tilt so precariously that the crew onboard are screaming and struggling to hold on. Water seems to rise up from the inside of the ship, swallowing it slowly, and Tommy can only watch in disbelief. The floor under him stays calm, their boat perfectly okay on the waters as an entire enemy ship not that far away gets tipped, sinking with a startling speed. 

Techno turns his head to him as the remains of the ship disappear into swirling water, and Tommy almost swears that his eyes glow. 

He really feels like he should stab him, grab Wilbur, and run right about now. 

Squeezing the knife in his hand, Tommy almost goes to try and stab Technoblade, before Phil steps up beside him, a hand onto his shoulder. 

“Mate, do you know Wilbur?” He asks, Tommy turning his attention to him as Techno turns back to the broken railing, looking down at the water below. “What’s your name?” Phil asks, seeming hardly concerned when Techno actually steps  _ off _ the ship, falling into the ocean, with Wilbur still in his arms. 

“What the fuck-!  _ Wilbur _ !” Tommy yells, running a few steps forward, stopping as he realizes he hears no splash. He carefully looks over the edge of the ship, seeing nothing. 

He turns to Phil. “What the hell is wrong with your friend, he just took Wilbur and jumped into the ocean, you fucking psychopath-!”

Phil smiles, Tommy raising the knife. He hardly seems worried, and he walks past Tommy, teetering on the edge of the broken railing. Tommy gasps, barely realizing a second before. “Come on.” Phil beckons, then he falls backwards, off the ship as well. 

Tommy stares with wide eyes, leaning over to see that Phil’s disappeared, and he notices the necklace in his hand glowing again, humming. 

Part of him tells him he’s got to be fucking dead already, having a weird dream while bleeding out on deck, while another part of him just screams to follow Wilbur, even if it’s off the edge of a ship into the waters with two people who must be out of their minds. 

Gritting his teeth, Tommy tucks the small knife away into his pocket, holds on tightly to the necklace, and looks down at the water, hesitant, his heart beating out of his chest. 

Saying fuck it, he takes a deep breath in, and jumps, his feet leaving the edge, the world tilting around him as he falls.

The water seems to come up to meet him, and when the waves catch him, it’s not cold. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man I just, MAN, I- man.
> 
> Do I know what I'm doing? No! Am I having fun? Yes. that's all that matters :)

  
  


The second Tommy hits the water, he  _ immensely _ regrets his life choices. 

Jumping off the edge of a ship into the open sea, where waves had been crashing harshly against their ship just a few minutes ago, is frankly, an absolutely idiotic way to go. The chances of him drowning isn’t low enough for comfort, considering the fact the ocean seemed capable enough to sink an entire ship just a few moments ago.

But Tommy will follow Wilbur anywhere, he’s sure of that fact, even if it’s to what is probably his certain death in the sea below. 

Tommy’s not the best at swimming, he knows enough to keep his head afloat, but he also knows it’ll mean nothing against raging waters coupled with a strong storm overhead.

Or, at least there... _ was _ a storm? Tommy could’ve sworn that it was starting to pour buckets from the clouds when the fighting was at its peak, but the rain seemed to have stopped entirely when Wilbur dropped to the ground.

Tommy doesn’t take too much energy to think about it, because he’s diving headfirst into the ocean and mourning the loss of being somewhat dry.

Holding his breath, he kicks his legs to steer himself upright in the water, and tries to wave his arms to let him turn and see where Wilbur’s sank down to. Wilbur can’t swim while being hurt, and Tommy’s not sure if he’ll be able to pull Wilbur above water, with himself being as exhausted as he is, but he needs to  _ try. _

It’s been far too long since he’s actually gone swimming. The last time Tommy swam in a body of water was over an entire year ago. It was in the first few months of actually traveling with Wilbur, where Wilbur had wanted to see if his new travel partner could swim. 

He tested Tommy’s swimming ability, by pushing him into a lake.

He was pissed at the time, but something he’ll never admit is that it’s a fond memory, because even though the lake had been cold as _ fuck,  _ it was a good moment when Wilbur jumped into the water right after him and proceeded to give tips on holding his breath and swimming properly. 

And Tommy did listen, except only after he attempted to drown Wilbur a total of three times. He was entirely justified in the attempted murder, being thrown into the water without a single warning was just rude.

They had spent that day swimming and sitting by the shore, their stuff staying dry, since Wilbur had told Tommy to put his bag down before he pushed the teen off the side of a small cliff. Tommy was bitter the whole day about being wet, but it was fun seeing if he could try to hold his breath for longer than Wilbur. He lost every time, and he swears Wilbur must be part fish, because each time, no matter how much he tried, Wilbur had always been able to stay under the surface just a minute longer than Tommy.

It was a good day, with lessons Tommy took to heart, and the growing respect of how much Wilbur  _ knew,  _ of water, of stupid swimming, of adventure and everything beyond. 

Sometimes, Wilbur makes stupid desicions, like getting kidnapped by crazy people and falling into the ocean, but Tommy will follow all the same. Because even with said stupid desicions, Wilbur is just  _ so cool, _ and Tommy wants to be by his side for everything cool thing that he is bound to find. Although he’d rather drown in this ocean around him than ever say that outloud. 

Tommy tries to see through the murky water, waving his arms and swimming down, trying to find anything, a single glimpse of Wilbur’s floating body, bleeding out in open water. It’ll be a pain to drag them both to air, and then drag Wilbur to safety, but Tommy refuses for any other outcome where Wilbur doesn’t come out of this alive. He’s losing time, he knows it, because Wilbur hadn’t looked well on deck, and he doubts Wilbur is able to hold his breath now. 

But he’s seeing nothing, and he’s losing his own breath, a faint burn in his chest becoming more and more apparent as he searches through the water for his Wilbur. 

He ignores it, tells himself just a minute more, maybe two, and swims even deeper, searching almost frantically, spinning around in the open water, feeling the currents around him seem to rise in temperature, and he would have expected the water to be cold, but it’s more lukewarm if anything. 

The necklace from Wilbur is still held tightly in his hand, and in his haste to keep searching, his grip loosens, letting the piece of jewelry float in open water as it slips away from his hand. 

Tommy turns around, curling his hand into a fist as he realizes the feeling of the chain is gone, and sees it float down gently, out of his range. His lungs scream for air, but he dives deeper anyway to catch it, because it’s Wilbur’s, and when he gets Wilbur out of here, he’s got to give it back. Wilbur’s worn that for as long Tommy can remember, it must be important. 

Reaching a hand out, he fumbles at grabbing it before it goes any deeper, cupping his hands around the gem part of it and holding it to his chest. As he does, he realizes he needs air, and he looks up, realizing just how far the surface has gotten from him. He struggles to not choke on the water around him, starting to panic, and he watches with wide eyes as small bits of light escape through his fingers from the necklace held tightly in his palms. 

_ ‘It’ll call for help’ _ that’s what Wilbur said on deck, right? Would this work underwater? Would it help them both? 

It glows a little brighter in Tommy’s hands as he kicks his legs to try and swim upwards, his chest burning with the urge to gasp for air, and for a moment he wonders if he’s not going to make it, if he’s too far. 

Arms slip around his torso and yank him upwards, faster than he could’ve done on his own, and he chokes on the water in surprise, half struggling to get them to let go, half trying to hold on so he can finally  _ breathe _ . 

He’s pulled up to above water, sputtering and gasping for air, coughing out water from his mouth as he tries to calm himself down. There’s still arms keeping him afloat, and for a split second, he thinks it could be Wilbur. 

When he turns around, he finds Phil’s unfamiliar presence instead, and he yells, hitting his palm into the side of Phil’s face and trying to swim away. 

“You!” Tommy coughs, pointing a finger up while still trying to push Phil back, who keeps a somewhat firm grip on Tommy, if only to keep him from drowning once more. “You-” Tommy coughs again.

“Breathe, mate.” Phil grins, and he turns his head to the side to dodge Tommy’s waving hand. “What’s your name?” He asks, as if it’s perfectly normal to have a conversation in the middle of the sea. 

Tommy looks around for a moment, Phil keeping a light hold onto his arms as Tommy realizes the ship is gone, and they really are out in open water. Wasn’t the ship just here? Or did he really swim that far?

“ _ Fuck _ you-” Tommy supplies, and raises his legs up, pressing the bottom of his boots against Phil’s chest and pushing. Phil raises his hands up, letting Tommy launch off him and swim backwards, trying to put distance between them. 

Tommy narrows his eyes at Phil, swimming just a little more back, and then he dives back down again, taking a deep breath before he disappears from sight. 

“Nope-!” Phil follows right behind, and not even ten seconds later, Tommy’s pulled up above water again, trying to hit Phil in the face. 

“Get off, I’m trying to find Wilbur!” Tommy yells, growling in frustration when Phil keeps swimming after him, staying close. 

“You’re going to  _ drown _ .” Phil insists, Tommy hitting his hands against the water and letting it splash right into the direction of Phil’s face. 

“I’m going to drown  _ you _ if you don’t stop following me-” Tommy threatens, Phil only huffing and giving a smile. “I need to go search for Wilbur, stop pulling me up!”

“You’re not going to find him there!” Phil raises his hands up, almost exasperated from his tone of voice. “Technoblade is already pretty far ahead, I came back to grab you-”

“Who the fuck is  _ Technoblade _ and why does he have Wilbur-” Tommy deadpans, observing Phil again and trying to think on if he can be trusted or not. 

He doesn’t look familiar in any way, from what Tommy can see. There’s a small braid hanging in his hair, reminding him of the one in Wilbur’s hair, almost matching, now that Tommy thinks about it. But that’s where the similarities stop, and Tommy feels like he would’ve remembered such blue eyes. They’re too bright, almost unnaturally so, and Tommy would be fascinated if he weren’t currently trying to get back with Wilbur. 

“I’ll tell you...” Phil raises a finger, poking into Tommy’s cheek. “If you tell me your name.”

“Why do you even want to know.” Tommy mutters, and he reaches into his pocket, fingers grabbing at the knife tucked away. He swaps it for the necklace in his hand, putting away the piece of jewelry as he lifts the knife above the water, flicking it open. “Where’s Wilbur?”

Phil sighs, barely acknowledging the blade being held towards the direction of his face. “I just want to know your name, mate!” Tommy just raises the knife closer, frowning intensely. “What am I supposed to call you?! Fucking child? Wilbur Jr?”

“Do  _ not _ call me-” Tommy fumbles at both of the terrible nicknames, making a face. 

“Oh, shit, wait- don’t tell me you're his kid?” Phli asks, eyes wide in surprise. 

“No!” Tommy answers immediately, frustration creeping into his tone. “No, Wilbur’s not my fucking- what the hell, where’s Wilbur?!”

“Phew.” Phil only sighs, laughing a little. “For a second I actually thought Wilbur came back with a literal  _ child _ .” 

“I’m not a child- Don’t call me a child-!” Tommy stammers, raising his knife closer to Phil’s face, although Phil seems to not be concerned. “I’m  _ sixteen _ !”

Phil raises his eyebrows. “That’s still a bit young. Wilbur’s dragging you around that young?”

“He doesn't drag me around, I follow.” Tommy says quietly, scowling. He’s close enough now that the knife pokes into Phil’s cheek, and he tries to let his voice be threatening. “Tell me where Wilbur is right now, or else.”

The knife doesn’t even make a mark, even as Tommy pushes it into Phil’s face, and Phil honestly just looks exasperated, giving Tommy a roll of the eyes. 

Tommy pulls the knife away, looking at it with confusion, before just trying to stab Phil in the shoulder. 

“Oy- my shirt, mate!” 

It doesn’t even sink in, it just makes a slight tear against the fabric of Phil’s shirt, and Tommy blinks, his panic on pause for a moment as he wonders if his knife is broken. 

“Are you done?” Phil asks, adjusting his sleeve, and Tommy swims backwards, feeling a bit more wary. 

“Wha- where’s Wilbur?” Tommy asks, and Phil follows, never straying too far. 

“He’s alright, don’t worry.” Phil reassures, holding a hand up, and it does help, although there’s still panic crawling back up Tommy’s throat. “Technoblade is probably worrying and panicking right now, even with our abilities-”

“Abilities-” Tommy repeats, and he’s reminded again of Wilbur’s vague words, the way he acts around the ocean, the way that ship that attacked them had sunk earlier, swiftly pulled under even though there hadn’t been any holes in it. “No, wait, wait-”

“Ah-” Phil swims in place, letting Tommy back up and try to put distance between them. “Don’t scream.” 

“What the fuck, what the actual-” Tommy sputters, looking around for their ship, and it’s not anywhere to be found, there’s no land to be found, only ocean and sky for as long as he can see, and it doesn’t make any sense, not at all, but there’s plenty of things that don’t make sense in the world, Tommy at least knows that. 

He just never thought he would actually see it. Even with adventure, he thought-

Tommy tries to dive back underwater, holding his breath and wanting to search for Wilbur again, to demand an explanation of this, but it’s like the water won’t let him go down, currents pushing him up, making his efforts useless. 

He pulls his head out of the water, gasping and wiping the water off his face, and he turns to see Phil just still in the same spot, watching patiently, like he’s waiting for Tommy to say something. 

Tommy raises the knife, even though he’s sure it might not even do anything. “Where’s Wilbur?” He demands, and his hand shakes over the water. 

Phil looks moments away from sighing, his head falling forward as his shoulders slump. “Well, at least you’re not panicking-”

“I am very much panicking!” Tommy shrieks, his voice being far too high pitched in panic, but he does not care at this point. “Your friend just fucking, what,  _ stole _ Wilbur and jumped off into the ocean like a crazy person, and our ship is just gone, even though I’m sure it was right  _ here, _ and the water- Why can’t I swim down?!” 

“Okay, okay-” 

“Where’s Wilbur!?” Tommy asks again, but it sounds much more whiny and less threatening, and he couldn’t care less. 

“Breath, mate.” Phil reassures, and Tommy frowns, because Phil seems like a swell person, if Tommy had met him while he and Wilbur were on travel, Tommy would be friendly, polite, even. 

But no, they’re both in the middle of the ocean, with things not adding up, and Tommy’s head spinning as he thinks about several tales and stories that he thought were just  _ stories. _ Mermaids, krakens, curses and magic, he’s always heard about them, how could he not, with the fuckton of stories Wilbur has in his head? But he thought they were just  _ stories. _

_ ‘The stories have to come from somewhere, don’t they? _ ’ He can hear Wilbur’s voice in his head say, and he blinks down at the water, swallowing hard. 

“I’m Phil.” Phil says, Tommy looking up at him. “Technoblade has Wilbur. We should go catch up with him.”

“Well,” Tommy fumbles, closing the knife in his hand and tucking it away. He chooses to give Phil a sliver of trust, if only because he’s the only person in the ocean as far as he can see, and he seems to know Wilbur. “We don’t have a ship, last I checked.”

“We don’t really need one.” Phil shrugs, and he swims up to Tommy, raising a hand up to his own ear and pulling off one of his dangling earrings, something that looks like a small, bright red ruby. “Here-”

“What are you- ow!” Tommy jolts, splashing water into Phil's face as something clamps onto his ear, and he raises a hand up to his right ear, considering yanking it right off. “I don’t even have my ears pierced!”

“It’s just a clip-on, mate.” Phil nods, Tommy glaring up at him. “It won’t fall off, trust me. Now do you want to see something cool?” 

“Like what?” Tommy can’t help but ask, curiosity always present. 

“Give me your hands.” Phil asks, and holds out his palms, Tommy eyeing them warily, like there might be a weapon he’s holding. There’s nothing except a few rings on his fingers, and something looking like a scar on his left palm, and Tommy glances up at Phil’s face again. 

“Come on.” Phil insists, Tommy frowning. 

“Are we going to go to Wilbur?”

“Yes, yes.” Phil grins, almost laughing. “Are you two friends?”

“Yes.” Tommy nods, responding almost instantly. Phil smiles.

“I’m glad. You seem like a nice kid.” The response is genuine, and Tommy wonders why Wilbur’s never mentioned this guy before. “Give me your hands, come on.” 

Tommy hesitates, before listening to Phil and letting his hands rest onto Phil’s palms, Phil holding on tightly with a big grin, and before Tommy knows it, they’re both sinking underneath the water too quickly. 

He holds onto Phil’s hands for dear life, kicking his legs and trying to pull Phil and him back up to the surface, holding his breath, although it’s hard since he didn’t get a proper second to take a gasp of air. 

They sink down quick, like they’re too heavy for the water to let them float, and Tommy keeps his head tilted up, trying to pull Phil, trying to kick his legs-

“Mate, you can take a breath.” He hears, and he looks at Phil in surprise. His voice warbles a bit, with the water about them, but Tommy still hears him loud and clear, and he stares with wide eyes as Phil laughs. 

Underwater. 

“Go on, go on, you’re going to pass out if you keep holding your breath.” Phil insists, tugging at Tommy’s hands, and Tommy shakes his head, even though his lungs burn and demand for air. He feels like his chest is going to explode, but he can’t just breathe underwater, he’ll drown, he’ll breathe in water. 

But Phil is perfectly fine in front of him, seeming to be doing just that, breathing in the ocean water around him, and Tommy takes one more look to the surface above him, which seems so far now, and he lets out his breath, sucking in air. 

Phil laughs again, as Tommy makes the most incredulous face, laughing with Phil in shock. 

“Wha- what the fuck?” Tommy questions, and a smile breaks out on his face, even if he doesn’t mean it, because what the fuck? This- this shouldn’t even be possible! “How- what-”

“Ta-da!” Phil pulls Tommy’s hands up into the air, both their arms raised up as Tommy takes an experimental gasp, and he doesn’t choke on water, but rather breathes in just fine. 

Tommy laughs, kicking his legs again, but only to keep himself upright, and Phil smiles, looking around them. “Look.” Phil says gently, tilting his head. 

Following his gaze, Tommy’s attention is caught by a small fish, swimming along by Tommy’s left side.

A glowing fish?   
  


A small goldfish is what it looks like, but it’s glowing a bright yellow-ish color, and Tommy follows it with his eyes, before seeing another fish cross it’s path. 

And another. And, another. 

Tommy turns his head left and right, watching with wide eyes as they seem to multiply, swimming around in a big circle around them, bright and glowing. 

There’s a dozen questions popping up in Tommy’s head, but he can’t find it in himself to actually ask them, instead just in awe, staring out into the water around him as he laughs a little, smiling. 

“It’s fish.” Tommy quietly says, looking to Phil, who lets go of one of Tommy’s hands to gently grab a goldfish out of the water, pulling it towards them.

“Yeah.” Phil responds, and he carefully pulls the fish to right in front of Tommy’s face, opening his head, Tommy getting a goldfish that swims and bumps right into his nose before quickly darting away. “Cool, huh?”

“It’s  _ so _ cool.” Tommy agrees, laughing again. 

Phil hums, smiling wide, and he tugs at Tommy’s hands, waving the fish away, and Tommy watches as the crowd of fish slowly breaks apart, swimming off into the distance. He's slightly disappointed at watching them leave, but he's quickly distracted by the next words he hears.

“You want to go see Wilbur now?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Phil is having a nice moment because this is also what he did with Wilbur years ago when he led him underwater for the first time. Deja vu, but with a different kid :)
> 
> Anyway, I'm sleepy, GOODNIGHT
> 
> and thanks for reading, another chapter coming probably soon, hopefully

**Author's Note:**

> If you were able to read the first version of this, good for you! Here's the edited one. Pretty neat, and I like it a lot better. (Probably because I'm writing this at midnight instead of like 3 am, much better wording)
> 
> Hope you liked it, thanks for reading! :D


End file.
